PM’s brief Queensland cyclone visit nothing but a votes grab

Proof that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is here to win votes has come directly from his own mouth – and it shows what is so wrong with politics in this country.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and National Emergency Management Agency Deputy Coordinator-General, Joe Buffone hold a media briefing in the National Situation Room (NEMA) in Canberra. Picture: Martin Ollman

Proof that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is here to win votes has come directly from his own mouth – and it shows what is so wrong with politics in this country.

As The Courier-Mail has rightly questioned why Mr Albanese decided to fly to Brisbane ahead of Tropical Cyclone Alfred, the man himself said on Wednesday he liked face-to-face communication and “Premier Crisafulli and I, at risk of damaging both of our careers, get on pretty well.”

Let’s get this straight. We’re bracing for a cyclone our part of the world hasn’t seen for 50 years and the Prime Minister is talking about his career.

More than this, he is talking about how his career could be harmed by working harmoniously with an LNP premier.

I don’t see David Crisafulli – or Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner for that matter – banging on about their careers at a time like this.

They and the dedicated people in charge of disaster management are getting on with the job – even as the Prime Minister insists on inserting himself in their efforts.

Mr Albanese has also said he wanted to be in Brisbane so he could feel “comfortable” that any assistance from the federal government was in place.

The latest tracking map of Tropical Cyclone Alfred by BOM as of 1.35pm on Thursday, March 6.

He could easily have done that from Canberra. He didn’t bring those 250,000 desperately needed sandbags on the plane with him on Tuesday night.

Besides, it’s not as if Queensland is under-represented by federal politicians, with Treasurer Jim Chalmers among those who live here.

Mr Albanese delights in telling us there are “no borders”.

“There’s no Tweed border here … this is not recognised by the cyclone and it certainly shouldn’t be recognised by government responses.”

So, by this logic, Mr Albanese would otherwise withhold federal government aid from Queensland because, unlike NSW, it doesn’t have a Labor premier.

Aren’t we lucky we have a cyclone barrelling towards us or Mr Albanese would forget about us entirely – except for that not insignificant matter of a federal election Labor looks set to lose.

It should not take a natural disaster or any other crisis, like we saw with the Covid pandemic, for leaders to put aside party politics and do what is best for those in need.

In fact, this should be the way it goes 100 per cent of the time.

Imagine how much safer our major roads would be – the Bruce Highway a stark example – or how a visit to a GP might actually be affordable to everyone if governments worked in sync.

While those in power persist in partisan politicking with the clear intention being to keep their jobs, the Australian people will be all the poorer.

Originally published as PM’s brief Queensland cyclone visit nothing but a votes grab